Dalal Street bulls back Narendra Modi in hope of revival

MUMBAI: BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi has found support on Dalal Street. After five years of policy paralysis and corruption scandals during the tenure of UPA-II, the sensex is ranged around the 19k mark amid a slowing economy. With investors mostly out of the money in all but a handful of stocks, D-Street bulls have decided to support the man credited with bringing prosperity to Gujarat, a state from where most of the brokers come from.

"Most brokers and traders come from Gujarat and the neighbouring Rajasthan. They have seen prosperity first hand. They are also the ones who are willing to take more risks than people from other states. So even if supporting Modi seems like a risky proposition, they are willing to do that," said a veteran of the Street.

According to Deven Choksey, MD, K R Choksey Shares & Securities, the market has been more or less in a dry spell in the last five years as the economy has slowed because of the incorrect policies of the government. "Manufacturing, agriculture, services... all the sectors badly want growth. With Modi promising to bring in the Gujarat model, I think he has a good chance," Choksey said.

So what is it that has prompted investors to support Modi? "There are three reasons why Dalal Street wants Modi to become the PM," said Arun Kejriwal, director, KRIS. "First, he has been able to instill faith among people about his ability to lead with speed. Second, people believe that he can give us a clean administration with the ability to implement plans. And they believe in Modi's vision."

Being a Gujarati, Modi can speak the language brokers and traders associate with. According to the head of a retail broking house, recently Modi was the chief guest at a function in Ahmedabad where top market analysts were awarded. "During his speech, the connect between him and us was instant... And the best thing that struck me was this man can execute his plan and also talk about it in a way that can sway people's minds," the broking house head said.

Even foreign fund managers support Modi, but with a hint of caution. "Secretly... quietly a lot of FIIs are hoping that Modi becomes the PM," said a top official with an India-targeted FII. "The reasons for this are Modi is focused, business friendly, brings clarity to the table and has a track record to back all the three traits. Investors love such people," the official said.